Conflict_and_DevelopmentFri Dec 12 19:00:09 EST 2014w1es1000.worldbank.orgPolicy Research Working Paper | Conflict_and_Development | World BankPolicy Research Working Paper on Conflict_and_Development, from the World BankOptimizing the size of public road contractsProcurement packaging has important effects on not only the bidders' bidding behavior, but also contractors' performance. By changing the size of public contracts, procurers can encourage (or discourage) market competition and improve contract performance, avoiding unnecessary cost overruns and project delays. In practice, there is no single solution about how to package public contracts. With procurement data from road projects in Nepal, this paper examines the optimal size of road contracts in rural areas. The optimum varies depending on policy objectives. To maximize the bidder participation, the length of road should be about 11 kilometers. To minimize cost overruns and delays, the contracts should be much larger at 17 and 21 kilometers, respectively. Compared with the current procurement practices, the findings suggest that procurers take more advantage of enlarging road packages, although contracts that are too large may increase the risk of discouraging firms from participating in public tenders.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120405115155&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-04-05T04:00:00.000Z2012-04-05T04:00:00.000ZLaw and Development|Conflict and Development|Transport|Public Sector Development|International Economics and Trade|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentGovernment Procurement|Transport Economics Policy & Planning|Debt Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Contract LawSouth AsiaIimi, Atsushi|Benamghar, RadiaOptimizing the size of public road contractsEnglishNepalLaw and Development|Conflict and Development|Transport|Public Sector Development|International Economics and Trade|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentGovernment Procurement|Transport Economics Policy & Planning|Debt Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Contract LawWPS6028NepalEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperSouth AsiaNatural resources, weak states and civil war : can rents stabilize coup prone regimes ?This paper argues that state weakness is broader than implied previously in the civil war literature, and that particular types of weakness in interaction with natural resources have aggravating or mitigating consequences for the risk of civil war. While in anocracies or unstable regimes natural resources can be expected to increase the risk of civil war, we suggest that resource wealth allows weak leaders to stabilize their relationship with their inner elite circle. In particular, for regimes at risk of coup d'etat, the availability of substantial resources is more likely to be channeled in ways that deter rebellion, plausibly countering the grievances generated by natural resources and rebels' viewing of such resources as a prize for taking over the state. Data from 1946-2003 and multiple empirical operationalizations broadly support our argument. These findings are consistent with work showing that resource rents can induce stability in state - society relationships.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120516151940&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-05-16T04:00:00.000Z2012-05-16T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Urban Development|Social Protections and Labor|Health, Nutrition and PopulationPopulation Policies|Hazard Risk Management|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Labor PoliciesThe World RegionBodea, CristinaNatural resources, weak states and civil war : can rents stabilize coup prone regimes ?EnglishWorldConflict and Development|Urban Development|Social Protections and Labor|Health, Nutrition and PopulationPopulation Policies|Hazard Risk Management|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Labor PoliciesWPS6071WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionEstimating the causal effects of conflict on education in Côte d'IvoireThis paper estimates the causal effects of civil war on years of education in the context of a school-going age cohort that is exposed to armed conflict in Cote d'Ivoire. Using year and department of birth to identify an individual's exposure to war, the difference-in-difference outcomes indicate that the average years of education for a school-going age cohort is .94 years fewer compared with an older cohort in war-affected regions. To minimize the potential bias in the estimated outcome, the authors use a set of victimization indicators to identify the true effect of war. The propensity score matching estimates do not alter the main findings. In addition, the outcomes of double-robust models minimize the specification errors in the model. Moreover, the paper finds the outcomes are robust across alternative matching methods, estimation by using subsamples, and other education outcome variables. Overall, the findings across different models suggest a drop in average years of education by a range of .2 to .9 fewer years. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120606142404&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-06-06T04:00:00.000Z2012-06-06T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|EducationAccess & Equity in Basic Education|Population Policies|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Education For All|Primary EducationAfricaDabalen, Andrew L.|Paul, SaumikEstimating the causal effects of conflict on education in Côte d'IvoireEnglishCote d'IvoireConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|EducationAccess & Equity in Basic Education|Population Policies|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Education For All|Primary EducationWPS6077Cote d'IvoireEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaCreating jobs in South Asia's conflict zonesThis paper describes the key challenges to job creation in conflict-affected environments in South Asia. It uses household survey data since the early 2000s for Afghanistan, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka to document the characteristics of labor markets in conflict-affected areas, exploiting the spatial and time variation in armed conflict within countries. The analysis finds that, across countries, labor markets look very different in conflict-affected areas when compared with non-conflict or low-conflict areas. Employment rates are higher in large part because women participate more in the labor market, but work tends to be more vulnerable, with more self-employment and unpaid family work. The authors show that these differences often pre-date the conflict but are also exacerbated by it. They also examine the constraints on the private sector activity in such areas, using firm surveys when possible. Finally, the paper reviews the existing literature and the policy experiences of several countries to draw some policy implications for job creation efforts in the conflict-affected areas of South Asia. It particularly highlights the role of the private sector and community initiatives, in conjunction with public policies, to improve the environment for successful job creation.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120625094609&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-06-25T04:00:00.000Z2012-06-25T04:00:00.000ZEnvironment|Conflict and Development|Social Protections and Labor|Health, Nutrition and Population|Poverty ReductionPost Conflict Reconstruction|Population Policies|Labor Markets|Environmental Economics & Policies|Rural Poverty ReductionSouth AsiaIyer, Lakshmi|Santos, IndhiraCreating jobs in South Asia's conflict zonesEnglishSouth AsiaEnvironment|Conflict and Development|Social Protections and Labor|Health, Nutrition and Population|Poverty ReductionPost Conflict Reconstruction|Population Policies|Labor Markets|Environmental Economics & Policies|Rural Poverty ReductionWPS6104South AsiaEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperSouth AsiaWinning hearts and minds through development ? evidence from a field experiment in AfghanistanIn areas afflicted by civil conflict, development projects can potentially serve an important counterinsurgency function by redressing grievances of marginalized groups and reducing violence. Using a large-scale randomized field experiment in Afghanistan, this paper explores whether the inclusion of villages in the country's largest development program alters perceptions of well-being, attitudes toward government, and violence in surrounding areas. The results indicate that the program generally has a positive effect on all three measures, but has no effects in areas with high levels of initial violence. These findings demonstrate that development programs can buttress government support and limit the onset of insurgencies in relatively secure areas, but that their effectiveness is more constrained in areas where insurgents are already active.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120712093251&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-07-12T04:00:00.000Z2012-07-12T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Private Sector Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Protections and Labor|Communities and Human SettlementsPost Conflict Reconstruction|Housing & Human Habitats|Labor Policies|Subnational Economic Development|E-BusinessSouth AsiaBeath, Andrew|Christia, Fotini|Enikolopov, RubenWinning hearts and minds through development ? evidence from a field experiment in AfghanistanEnglishAfghanistanConflict and Development|Private Sector Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Protections and Labor|Communities and Human SettlementsPost Conflict Reconstruction|Housing & Human Habitats|Labor Policies|Subnational Economic Development|E-BusinessWPS6129AfghanistanEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperSouth AsiaWhy follow the leader ? collective action, credible commitment and conflictMost analyses of conflict assume that conflicting groups act in a unitary fashion. This assumption is often violated: to reduce their risk of replacement, group leaders prevent both group members and soldiers from acting collectively, making it difficult for leaders to make credible commitments to them. Lifting the assumption that groups are unitary shifts the analysis of a wide range of conflict issues. The effects of income shocks and rents on conflict risk become contingent on collective action. Leader decisions regarding collective action explain the forcible recruitment of child soldiers and predation on civilians: leaders who prefer to limit military organization are more likely to pursue these tactics. Leader decisions regarding collective action also introduce an unexplored mechanism by which state capacity is created and a specific reason to regard state capacity as endogenous to conflict risk. This focus, finally, suggests that interventions to reduce conflict risk, such as safety net payments or service delivery, are likely to be most difficult to deliver precisely where leaders are most reluctant to allow collective action and where, therefore, conflict risk is highest.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20120821171536&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2012-08-21T04:00:00.000Z2012-08-21T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Social Protections and LaborPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Armed Conflict|Labor Policies|International Terrorism & CounterterrorismThe World RegionKeefer, PhilipWhy follow the leader ? collective action, credible commitment and conflictEnglishWorldConflict and Development|Social Protections and LaborPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Armed Conflict|Labor Policies|International Terrorism & CounterterrorismWPS6179WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionViolent conflict and gender inequality : an overviewViolent conflict, a pervasive feature of the recent global landscape, has lasting impacts on human capital, and these impacts are seldom gender neutral. Death and destruction alter the structure and dynamics of households, including their demographic profiles and traditional gender roles. To date, attention to the gender impacts of conflict has focused almost exclusively on sexual and gender-based violence. The authors show that a far wider set of gender issues must be considered to better document the human consequences of war and to design effective postconflict policies. The emerging empirical evidence is organized using a framework that identifies both the differential impacts of violent conflict on males and females (first-round impacts) and the role of gender inequality in framing adaptive responses to conflict (second-round impacts). War's mortality burden is disproportionately borne by males, whereas women and children constitute a majority of refugees and the displaced. Indirect war impacts on health are more equally distributed between the genders. Conflicts create households headed by widows who can be especially vulnerable to intergenerational poverty. Second-round impacts can provide opportunities for women in work and politics triggered by the absence of men. Households adapt to conflict with changes in marriage and fertility, migration, investments in children's health and schooling, and the distribution of labor between the genders. The impacts of conflict are heterogeneous and can either increase or decrease preexisting gender inequalities. Describing these gender differential effects is a first step toward developing evidence-based conflict prevention and postconflict policy. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130221132422&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-02-21T05:00:00.000Z2013-02-21T05:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|GenderHealth Monitoring & Evaluation|Population Policies|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Gender and Development|Gender and HealthThe World RegionBuvinic, Mayra|Das Gupta, Monica|Casabonne, Ursula|Verwimp, PhilipViolent conflict and gender inequality : an overviewEnglishWorldConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|GenderHealth Monitoring & Evaluation|Population Policies|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Gender and Development|Gender and HealthWPS6371WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionWhat is a civil war ? a critical review of its definition and (econometric) consequencesThe authors argue that the academic literature, both qualitative and quantitative, has mislabeled most episodes of large-scale violence in Africa as civil war; these episodes better fit their concept of regional war complexes. The paper seeks to highlight the fundamental flaws in the conception of civil war in the econometric literature and their implications for econometric specification and estimation, problems that this literature is inherently incapable of rectifying. The authors advocate the comparative study of regional war complexes in Africa based on historical narratives.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130403082529&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-04-03T04:00:00.000Z2013-04-03T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Urban Development|Social DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Post Conflict Reintegration|International Affairs|Hazard Risk ManagementAfricaGersovitz, Mark|Kriger, NormaWhat is a civil war ? a critical review of its definition and (econometric) consequencesEnglishAfricaConflict and Development|Urban Development|Social DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Post Conflict Reintegration|International Affairs|Hazard Risk ManagementWPS6397AfricaEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaSchooling, violent conflict, and gender in BurundiThis paper investigates the effect of exposure to violent conflict on human capital accumulation in Burundi. It combines a nationwide household survey with secondary sources on the location and timing of the conflict. Only 20 percent of the birth cohorts studied (1971-1986) completed primary education. Depending on the specification, the probability of completing primary schooling for a boy exposed to violent conflict declines by 7 to 17 percentage points compared to a nonexposed boy, with a decline of 11 percentage points in the preferred specification. In addition, exposure to violent conflict reduces the gender gap in schooling, but only for girls from nonpoor households. Forced displacement is one of the channels through which conflict affects schooling. The results are robust to various specifications and estimation methods.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130422161458&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-04-22T04:00:00.000Z2013-04-22T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Poverty Reduction|EducationPost Conflict Reconstruction|Education For All|Population Policies|Rural Poverty Reduction|Primary EducationAfricaVerwimp, Philip|Van Bavel, JanSchooling, violent conflict, and gender in BurundiEnglishBurundiConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Poverty Reduction|EducationPost Conflict Reconstruction|Education For All|Population Policies|Rural Poverty Reduction|Primary EducationWPS6418BurundiEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaEducation and civil conflict in NepalBetween 1996 and 2006, Nepal experienced violent civil conflict as a consequence of a Maoist insurgency, which many argue also brought about an increase in female empowerment. This paper exploits variations in exposure to conflict by birth cohort, survey date, and district to estimate the impact of the insurgency on education outcomes. Overall conflict intensity, measured by conflict casualties, is associated with an increase in female educational attainment, whereas abductions by Maoists, which often targeted school children, have the reverse effect. Male schooling tended to increase more rapidly in areas where the fighting was more intense, but the estimates are smaller in magnitude and more sensitive to specification than estimates for females. Similar results are obtained across different specifications, and robustness checks indicate that these findings are not due to selective migration.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130530105918&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-05-30T04:00:00.000Z2013-05-30T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|EducationPrimary Education|Population Policies|Education For All|Education and Society|Post Conflict ReconstructionSouth AsiaValente, ChristineEducation and civil conflict in NepalEnglishNepalConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|EducationPrimary Education|Population Policies|Education For All|Education and Society|Post Conflict ReconstructionWPS6468NepalEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperSouth AsiaImpact evaluation of conflict prevention and peacebuilding interventionsThe international community is paying increased attention to the 25 percent of the world's population that lives in fragile and conflict affected settings, acknowledging that these settings represent daunting development challenges. To deliver better results on the ground, it is necessary to improve the understanding of the impacts and effectiveness of development interventions operating in contexts of conflict and fragility. This paper argues that it is both possible and important to carry out impact evaluations even in settings of violent conflict, and it presents some examples from a collection of impact evaluations of conflict prevention and peacebuilding interventions. The paper examines the practices of impact evaluators in the peacebuilding sector to see how they address evaluation design, data collection, and conflict analysis. Finally, it argues that such evaluations are crucial for testing assumptions about how development interventions affect change -- the so-called "theory of change" -- which is important for understanding the results on the ground.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130624113015&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-06-24T04:00:00.000Z2013-06-24T04:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Poverty Reduction|Science and Technology Development|EducationPoverty Monitoring & Analysis|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Science Education|Scientific Research & Science Parks|Poverty Impact EvaluationThe World RegionGaarder, Marie|Annan, JeannieImpact evaluation of conflict prevention and peacebuilding interventionsEnglishWorldConflict and Development|Poverty Reduction|Science and Technology Development|EducationPoverty Monitoring & Analysis|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Science Education|Scientific Research & Science Parks|Poverty Impact EvaluationWPS6496WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionDoes the semi-autonomous agency model function in a low-governance environment ? the case of the road development agency in ZambiaThis paper uses Zambia as a case study to assess empirically whether political interference in a low-governance environment has diminished in the past years as expected after a semi-autonomous agency model was set up ten years ago. The road sector in Zambia has experienced some significant developments since then. The paper uses data on contract from 2008 to 2011 and analyses a number of key trends related to Road Development Agency governance and staffing dynamics as well as procurement and project selection within the institution. The main findings indicate that, after some years of implementation of these reforms, there is reason to question whether the model of semi-autonomous agency enables road management to be shielded from political interference. Zambia may be an isolated case but, so far, this model does not seem to have been able to decrease political interference in the selection or supervision of projects and there seems to have been an increased lack of accountability of civil servants working in this sector. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20130827101929&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-08-27T04:00:00.000Z2013-08-27T04:00:00.000ZPublic Sector Development|Transport|Conflict and Development|Rural Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentTransport Economics Policy & Planning|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Rural Roads & Transport|Banks & Banking Reform|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption MeasuresAfricaRaballand, Gael|Bridges, Kate|Beuran, Monica|Sacks, AudreyDoes the semi-autonomous agency model function in a low-governance environment ? the case of the road development agency in ZambiaEnglishZambiaPublic Sector Development|Transport|Conflict and Development|Rural Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentTransport Economics Policy & Planning|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Rural Roads & Transport|Banks & Banking Reform|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption MeasuresWPS6585ZambiaEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaArbitrating and mediating disputes : benchmarking arbitration and mediation regimes for commercial disputes related to foreign direct investmentAn effective commercial arbitration regime matters for foreign investors. It gives parties the autonomy to create a dispute resolution system tailored to increasingly complex disputes. Foreign investors view arbitration as a way to mitigate risks by providing legal certainty on enforcement rights, due process, and access to justice. The Arbitrating and Mediating Disputes indicators assess the legal and institutional framework for commercial arbitration, mediation, and conciliation regimes in 100 economies. All surveyed economies recognize arbitration as a tool for resolving commercial disputes and only nine economies have not acceded to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. In the Arbitrating and Mediating Disputes indicators, High Income OECD and Eastern Europe and Central Asia are the regions that reformed their laws on alternative dispute resolution the most between 2011 and 2012. The data also show that, globally, arbitration proceedings take 326 days on average, while recognition and enforcement proceedings of foreign arbitral awards take 557 days on average. The Arbitration and Mediating Disputes indicators are significantly correlated with perception data on the importance of alternative dispute resolution, as well as other measures such as total foreign direct investment inflows and inflows per capita, the Doing Business 2013 Enforcing Contracts data, the World Bank Group's Governance Indicators, the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Indicators, and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency's World Investment and Political Risk data. The paper concludes by identifying several opportunities for improvement, such as greater flexibility for domestic arbitration regimes, faster arbitration proceedings, and better domestic court capabilities.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20131002150412&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-10-02T04:00:00.000Z2013-10-02T04:00:00.000ZLaw and Development|Conflict and Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentArbitration|Contract Law|Debt Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Trade LawThe World RegionPouget, SophieArbitrating and mediating disputes : benchmarking arbitration and mediation regimes for commercial disputes related to foreign direct investmentEnglishWorldLaw and Development|Conflict and Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentArbitration|Contract Law|Debt Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Trade LawWPS6632WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionCivil conflict and firm performance : evidence from Cote d'IvoireThis paper investigates the impact of political instability and civil conflict on firms. It studies the unrest in Cote d'Ivoire that began in 2000, using a census of all registered firms for the years 1998-2003. The analysis uses structural estimates of the production function and exploits spatial variations in conflict intensity to derive the cost of conflict on firms in terms of productivity loss. The results indicate that the conflict led to an average 16-23 percent drop in firm total factor productivity and the decline is 5-10 percentage points larger for firms that are owned by or employing foreigners. These results are consistent with anecdotal evidence of increasing violent attacks and looting of foreigners and their businesses during the conflict. The results suggest increases in operating costs is a possible channel driving this impact. Finally, the paper investigates whether firms responded by hiring fewer foreign workers and finds evidence supporting this hypothesis.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20131004095031&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-10-04T04:00:00.000Z2013-10-04T04:00:00.000ZSocial Protections and Labor|Conflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Private Sector Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentEconomic Theory & Research|Labor Policies|Microfinance|E-Business|Post Conflict ReconstructionAfricaKlapper, Leora|Richmond, Christine|Tran, TrangCivil conflict and firm performance : evidence from Cote d'IvoireEnglishCote d'IvoireSocial Protections and Labor|Conflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Private Sector Development|Finance and Financial Sector DevelopmentEconomic Theory & Research|Labor Policies|Microfinance|E-Business|Post Conflict ReconstructionWPS6640Cote d'IvoireEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaEvidence gap maps - a tool for promoting evidence-informed policy and prioritizing future researchEvidence-gap maps present a new addition to the tools available to support evidence-informed policy making. Evidence-gap maps are thematic evidence collections covering a range of issues such as maternal health, HIV/AIDS, and agriculture. They present a visual overview of existing systematic reviews or impact evaluations in a sector or subsector, schematically representing the types of interventions evaluated and outcomes reported. Gap maps enable policy makers and practitioners to explore the findings and quality of the existing evidence and facilitate informed judgment and evidence-based decision making in international development policy and practice. The gap map also identifies key "gaps" where little or no evidence from impact evaluations and systematic reviews is available and where future research should be focused. Thus, gap maps can be a useful tool for developing a strategic approach to building the evidence base in a particular sector. This paper provides an introduction to evidence-gap maps, outlines the gap-map methodology, and presents some examples.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20131213135609&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-12-13T05:00:00.000Z2013-12-13T05:00:00.000ZInformation and Communication Technologies|Conflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Education|Private Sector DevelopmentHealth Monitoring & Evaluation|Information Security & Privacy|E-Business|International Terrorism & Counterterrorism|Science EducationThe World RegionSnilstveit, Birte|Vojtkova, Martina|Bhavsar, Ami|Gaarder, MarieEvidence gap maps - a tool for promoting evidence-informed policy and prioritizing future researchEnglishWorldInformation and Communication Technologies|Conflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Education|Private Sector DevelopmentHealth Monitoring & Evaluation|Information Security & Privacy|E-Business|International Terrorism & Counterterrorism|Science EducationWPS6725WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World RegionCrime and growth convergence : evidence from MexicoScholars have often argued that crime deters growth, but the empirical literature assessing such effect is scarce. By exploiting cross-municipality income and crime data for Mexico -- a country that experienced a high increase in crime rates over the past decade -- this study circumvents two of the most common problems faced by researchers in this area. These are: (i) the lack of a homogenous, consistently comparable measure of crime and (ii) the small sample problem in the estimation. Combining income data from poverty maps, administrative records on crime and violence, and public expenditures data at the municipal level for Mexico (2005-2010), the analysis finds evidence indicating that drug-related crimes indeed deter growth. It also finds no evidence of a negative effect on growth from crimes unrelated to drug trafficking. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20131219134702&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2013-12-19T05:00:00.000Z2013-12-19T05:00:00.000ZLaw and Development|Public Sector Development|Poverty Reduction|Conflict and Development|Social DevelopmentCrime and Society|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption Measures|Achieving Shared Growth|International Terrorism & Counterterrorism|Corruption & Anticorruption LawLatin America & CaribbeanEnamorado, Ted|Lopez-Calva, Luis F.|Rodriguez-Castelan, CarlosCrime and growth convergence : evidence from MexicoEnglishMexicoLaw and Development|Public Sector Development|Poverty Reduction|Conflict and Development|Social DevelopmentCrime and Society|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption Measures|Achieving Shared Growth|International Terrorism & Counterterrorism|Corruption & Anticorruption LawWPS6730MexicoEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperLatin America & CaribbeanTrust and identity in a small, post-socialist, post-crisis societyThe principal focus in the substantial literature on impediments to economic development has been on the inadequacies of policies and governance. However, successful economic development requires effectiveness of markets and incentives for investment, which in turn require trust. This paper reports on trust in a development context. The paper uses trust experiments, a post-experiment survey, and econometric analysis relating trust to identity and other personal attributes in the setting of Montenegro, a small, recently-independent, post-socialist, post-crisis society. External validity was sought by providing sufficient material reward to balance identity-related expressive motives and by having two groups of subjects, one usual university students and another group that, while also students, was somewhat older and had had greater market or commercial experience. The paper reviews cultural priors that can be expected to affect trust and distinguishes between generalized trust that can be socially beneficial and particularized trust that can be disadvantageous for development. The empirical results suggest that trust among private individuals is not an impediment to development in Montenegro. As a result, policy reform can improve economic and social outcomes. However, the results redirect the focus to issues of governance and political entrenchment as potential explanations for impediments to development. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20140401135537&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2014-04-01T04:00:00.000Z2014-04-01T04:00:00.000ZCulture and Development|Conflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Development|Private Sector DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Social Capital|Political Economy|Ethics & Belief Systems|Business Ethics, Leadership and ValuesEurope and Central AsiaBjornskov, Christian|Bogetic, Zeljko|Hillman, Arye L.|Popovic, MilenkoTrust and identity in a small, post-socialist, post-crisis societyEnglishMontenegroCulture and Development|Conflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Development|Private Sector DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Social Capital|Political Economy|Ethics & Belief Systems|Business Ethics, Leadership and ValuesWPS6828MontenegroEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperEurope and Central AsiaTrafficking and fragility in West AfricaTrafficking is an emerging concern in West Africa. In 2011, 17 percent of all cocaine consumed in Europe -- 21 tons -- passed through the region, for a retail value of US$1.7 billion. This paper discusses the evolution of trafficking in the region and provides estimates of the size and value of trafficking flows to demonstrate the significance of this illegal activity. Although this topic is gaining increasing attention, less attention has been has been paid to how trafficking is perpetuating fragility. This paper contributes to this area of research by identifying five channels through which trafficking is intensifying fragility in the region. The relative importance of each channel is discussed, with specific countries as case-study examples. Possible programmatic responses are then suggested with examples of policy approaches successfully adopted elsewhere in the world.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20141031143922&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2014-10-31T04:00:00.000Z2014-10-31T04:00:00.000ZLaw and Development|Public Sector Development|Governance|Conflict and Development|Social DevelopmentCrime and Society|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption Measures|Human Rights|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Governance IndicatorsAfricaRalston, LauraTrafficking and fragility in West AfricaEnglishWestern AfricaLaw and Development|Public Sector Development|Governance|Conflict and Development|Social DevelopmentCrime and Society|Public Sector Corruption & Anticorruption Measures|Human Rights|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Governance IndicatorsWPS7079Western AfricaEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperAfricaOil and civil conflict : can public spending have a mitigation effect ?This paper explores the conditions under which public spending could minimize violent conflict related to oil wealth. Previous work suggests that oil can lead to violent conflict because it increases the value of the state as a prize or because it undermines the state's bureaucratic penetration. Yet, little has been said on how oil wealth could be used to prevent the onset of violent conflict through public spending by buying off citizens and elites, increasing state legitimacy by providing basic services, or strengthening the military and security apparatus. The empirical analysis (148 countries over 1960-2009) shows that higher levels of military spending are associated with lower risk of small- and large-scale conflict onset in countries rich in oil and gas. By contrast, in economies with little natural resources, increases in military spending are associated with a higher risk of conflict. Welfare expenditure is associated with lower risk of small-scale conflict, irrespective of the level of oil revenue. However, general government spending does not appear to have any robust mitigating effects.</div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20141110142112&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2014-11-10T05:00:00.000Z2014-11-10T05:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Social DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Population Policies|Social Conflict and Violence|Post Conflict ReintegrationLatin America & CaribbeanSingh, Raju Jan|Bodea, Cristina|Higashijima, MasaakiOil and civil conflict : can public spending have a mitigation effect ?EnglishHaitiConflict and Development|Health, Nutrition and Population|Social DevelopmentPost Conflict Reconstruction|Peace & Peacekeeping|Population Policies|Social Conflict and Violence|Post Conflict ReintegrationWPS7100HaitiEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperLatin America & CaribbeanTrade and civil conflict : revisiting the cross-country evidenceThis paper revisits and expands the evidence on the impact of trade shocks on intra-state conflict with a large sample of developing countries in the 1960-2010 period. The results suggest that increases in the prices of a country's exported commodities raise the country's risk of civil conflict and its duration. The effect on conflict risk is mainly driven by the price of point-source commodities, in line with the rapacity effect theory of conflict. However, the paper does not find support for the opportunity cost theory via exported commodities. The analysis also finds that intense trading with contiguous countries is associated with lower duration of intra-state conflict, consistent with the idea that such trade reduces the incentive of contiguous countries to fuel conflict in their neighbor. Trading with neighbors is also associated with a lower risk of conflict, when such trade occurs under trade agreements. By contrast, neither imported commodity prices nor the economic cycle in export markets appears to exert any influence on the probability or duration of conflict. The paper identifies several conditions under which changes in the value of exported commodities cease to matter for conflict probability. </div><img src="http://wbws.worldbank.org/feeds/main/tracker.html?p=000158349_20141126085420&db=doc&feedName=Conflict_and_Development&feedClass=NOT_DEFINED&cid=3001_DECwps_Conflict_and_Development" height=1 width=1 border=0></div>2014-11-26T05:00:00.000Z2014-11-26T05:00:00.000ZConflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Development|Private Sector DevelopmentEmerging Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Economic Theory & Research|E-Business|Social Conflict and ViolenceThe World RegionCali, Massimiliano|Mulabdic, AlenTrade and civil conflict : revisiting the cross-country evidenceEnglishWorldConflict and Development|Macroeconomics and Economic Growth|Social Development|Private Sector DevelopmentEmerging Markets|Post Conflict Reconstruction|Economic Theory & Research|E-Business|Social Conflict and ViolenceWPS7125WorldEnglishPolicy Research Working PaperThe World Region